Dune CCG
Dune CCG Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
The Spacing Guild uses the spice to direct the inward eye, enabling Guild steersmen to safely navigate the perils of hyperspace. The spice is the key to the Guild's immense power, a well-kept secret enabling them to monopolize space travel and achieve ever-increasing influence over the Padishah Emperors who rule the Imperium. Without the spice, both the Guild and the Imperium would crumble.
As widespread space travel brought entirely new sectors within reach, the Padishah Emperors instituted a feudal system of government to better administer these far-flung worlds, uniting them all under the collective banner of the Imperium. Thus the Great Houses were born, each controlling fiefs that encompass entire worlds. To further cement this hierarchy, both the Landsraad and CHOAM were founded, comprising political and economic assemblies to oversee the now-powerful Great Houses. These organizations were charged with monitoring the political, legal and economic affairs of the entire Imperium.
The Bene Gesserit Sisterhood is an ancient order with its own agenda. They rely on the spice for their truth trance allowing them to penetrate the veils of falsehood and genetic memory. For over 90 generations, they have manipulated the Great Houses in a selective breeding plan intended to produce the Kwisatz Haderach, "he who will be many places at once," a male Bene Gesserit and super being able to recall both the future and the past as a single, collective memory.
On Arrakis itself, unseen by the nobles of the Great Houses in their off-world palaces, the Fremen emerge from their cavernous sietches to patrol the harsh Arrakeen surface. Self-appointed wardens of Dune, the Fremen await the day when enough water has been collected to begin the transformation of their planet. Already, their carefully placed wind traps and dew precipitators reclaim much of the moisture the arid desert winds rob from the soil. In time thousands of underground cisterns can be deployed to irrigate hybrid plantings, initiating an ecological chain reaction that may fulfill their dreams of a green Arrakis.
It is at this crucial juncture in the history of the Imperium that the events in DUNE: Thunder at Twilight begin...
2 Game Overview
Welcome to Storm Front, the second edition of the DUNE trading card game. DUNE is a game of political and economic rivalry in which players each represent an Imperial House vying for admission to the Landsraad High Council. One of the Great Houses has offered to support your admission, if you will first help them seize control of Arrakis.
In DUNE, you play the part of a minor House hoping to gain admission to the Landsraad High Council. Led by the Padishah Emperor, the Landsraad High Council is the highest authority within the Imperium, its membership encompassing the most powerful Imperial families. By earning a seat on the High Council you acquire the status of a Great House and are awarded both an irrevocable family title and a hereditary station within the aristocracy.
During the game, you will gain the assistance of personalities both noble and infamous, obtain control of tangible resources and economic arrangements, and execute daring plots. Your opponents will try to thwart you through warfare, duels, leveraged negotiation, and other strategies even more nefarious. Throughout all your activities, you must be careful to rigidly obey the Great Convention.
THE GREAT CONVENTION: The Landsraad High Council creates and maintains strict laws that regulate the composition and conduct of its governing Houses. These laws foster peace and order within the Imperium. They devote specific attention to House conduct and Landsraad admission, providing two bodies of legislation known as the "Landsraad Conventions" and the "Landsraad Provisions" respectively. Under the Landsraad Conventions, all Houses must obey formalized rules of conduct dictated by the Order of Petitioning and the Forms of Kanly. According to the Landsraad Provisions, Houses seeking admission to the High Council must fulfill two fundamental requirements: wealth and favor.
2.1 Game Objectives
To be accepted as a Great House, your house must fulfill the twin objectives of the Landsraad Provisions - wealth and favor.
WEALTH. Great Houses must possess a certain degree of House wealth, and the only commodity to count in this regard is spice. Spice is acquired by purchasing it from the CHOAM Exchange or by producing it on one or more regions of the planet Dune. To fulfill the Provision of wealth, your house must have a hoard of at least 10 spice tokens when seeking admission to the High Council.
FAVOR: A House contending for admission must earn and maintain a certain level of Imperial favor, which is a measure of esteem in the eyes of the Great Houses. Favor is acquired by demonstrating strength and valor in House endeavors; and is maintained by complying with the forms and codes of the Landsraad Conventions. To fulfill the provision of favor, a House must possess at least 10 favor when requesting admission to the High Council.
REQUESTING ADMISSION: Once the required wealth and favor are earned, a House may Request Admission to the Landsraad High Council, winning the game.
2.2 CHOAM
CHOAM, the Combine Honnete Ober Advancer Mercantile, is the universal corporation responsible for regulating interstellar trade. Officially controlled by the Great Houses of the Imperium, the welfare of CHOAM depends heavily on the secret mélange stockpiles of the Spacing Guild. CHOAM functions as a vast financial exchange, regulating commerce through the twin reserves of the Imperial Treasury and the Guild Hoard. As a house noble, your seat on the CHOAM Exchange grants access to these reserves.
SOLARIS. The solari is the official unit of currency sanctioned by the Imperial Treasury. Spend solaris to bring various cards into play and to buy spice and favor during the game.
SPICE. Amassed in the Guild Hoard, spice is the most precious commodity in the universe and serves as the standard upon which the Imperial solari is valued. Though CHOAM gauges riches by solaris, it measures House wealth by spice alone.
CHOAM EXCHANGE. The Exchange monitors surpluses and shortages within CHOAM's twin banks, inflating or deflating the value of solaris according to the amount of spice held in reserve. The CHOAM Rate of Exchange (CROE) fluctuates from 1 to 6, indicating the value (in solaris) of one unit of spice.
2.3 Landsraad
The Landsraad is responsible for the political administration of the Imperium. Delegates from Houses major and minor in the Landsraad Assembly enact legislation originating within the Landsraad High Council.
Each House controls a seat in the Landsraad Assembly. It is every House's ambition to gain admission to the High Council, and this assembly seat provides the opportunities essential for such advancement.
FAVOR. Imperial favor measures a House's esteem and influence within the Assembly. This favor fluctuates during the game, rising when a House excels in accordance with the Landsraad Conventions and falling when it falters.
Favor is open-ended; there is no minimum or maximum number that one may possess; favor can even fall into negative numbers. However, no House may draw cards to replenish its hand when its favor is 0 or lower at the end of any game turn (this effect may eliminate a House from play).
SPONSORSHIP: A House sponsor represents the connection to an Imperial Power, a group that holds enormous influence in the Imperium. Houses ally themselves with sponsors to gain access to the individuals, resources, or privileges that help them gain Great House status. During House Creation, choose the sponsor whose strengths best suit your strategy.
2.4 Imperial Powers
Each Imperial Power represents a select group that wields enormous influence. The Imperial Powers in the Landsraad are House Corrino, House Atreides and House Harkonnen. Alternately, the Spacing Guild, the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood, and the Fremen emerge as powerful groups in CHOAM. Finally, the Spice Miners Guild, the Water Sellers Union, and the Dune Smugglers are not recognized in any official sense, but they have strong leverage among the many Houses that rely on Arrakeen commerce.
Choose a benefactor carefully, for each Power has its own strengths, foibles, and enemies.
HOUSE CORRINO: The royal family of the Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV exerts tremendous influence in the Landsraad and CHOAM. House Corrino maintains its supremacy through extreme caution, employing its dreaded legions of Sardaukar when all other measures have been exhausted.
HOUSE ATREIDES: Led by Duke Leto, House Atreides enjoys great popularity among the Great Houses and serves as the informal speaker of the Landsraad High Council. Not among the wealthiest of the Great Houses, House Atreides maintains greatness through its reputation for justice and honor.
HOUSE HARKONNEN: Directed by the Baron Vladimir, House Harkonnen has risen in power through its immense wealth and naked ambition. House Harkonnen fosters a long-standing enmity with House Atreides and conspires to bring an end to the Atreides line with the death of Leto and his only heir, Paul.
THE SPACING GUILD: Represented by Oberon, a third stage Navigator, the Guild enjoys a monopoly over interstellar space travel. Though it carefully guards its neutrality, the Guild views the political meddling of the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood as a serious threat.
THE BENE GESSERIT SISTERHOOD: The Emperor's own Truthsayer, Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam, helps the Sisterhood control Imperial affairs through political conniving and CHOAM membership. An ancient school built upon esoteric 'Ways,' the Sisterhood has developed a program for selective breeding and human development to produce the Kwisatz Haderach, the super being who may be many places at once.
THE FREMEN: Guided by their mysterious leader Liet, the Fremen are mistakenly regarded as a populace of scattered tribesmen, dispersed among the cities and urban fringes of the planet Arrakis. Officially recognized as neither a Landsraad nor a CHOAM power, the Fremen are the true wardens of Dune, secretly controlling most of the affairs that occur on-planet.
THE SPICE MINERS GUILD: A group of veteran spice workers under the guidance of Director Ormi B'rrican, this is a force not to be crossed. Only the Fremen know the ways of the Worm as do the miners. If this group of hardened desert harvesters were to strike, the flow of spice would stop, and the Imperium would find itself rapidly brought to its knees.
THE WATER SELLERS UNION: Arrakis may be the center of the universe, but the center of every Arrakeen city is the water sellers' domain. Everyone on the planet is trapped between the scorching sun and the merciless sands, and water is as precious as air to those who work here. And rest assured, if Lingar Bewt, their leader, could charge for air, he would.
DUNE SMUGGLERS: Deep in the recesses of Tuek's Sietch, Esmar Tuek leads his followers among the cities like the Fremen move among the dunes. He recognizes no Imperial overlord, and will bend his knee to no so-called Great House, for he knows the Houses may hold wealth, but people like his actually earn it.
2.4.1 Adversaries
Every Imperial Power has at least one other Power bent on its destruction. Such powers are also your adversaries (See Table 1 Imperial Adversaries).
| Imperial Sponsor | Adversaries |
|---|---|
| Fremen | House Harkonnen |
| The Guild | Sisterhood, Dune |
| House Atreides | Houses Harkonnen, Corrino |
| House Corrino | House Atreides |
| House Harkonnen | House Atreides, Fremen |
| The Sisterhood | The Guild |
| Dune Smugglers | The Guild |
| Spice Miners Guild | Water Sellers Union |
| Water Sellers Union | Spice Miners Guild |
Table 1 Imperial Adversaries
3 Card Overview
The following sections give an overview of the cards and provide some explanation of how to use them during the game.
3.1 Card Types
There are five card types - Holdings, Personas, Resources, Plans and Events. There are two card groups - cards with amber backs are House cards, while cards with deep blue backs are Imperial cards.
3.1.1 Holdings
Holdings have orange-red faces, and are found in the Imperial Deck. They are properties delegated to qualified Houses of the Landsraad. All holdings except Home worlds are unique. There are four subtypes of holdings: Home worlds, Fiefs, Charters, and Siridar fiefs (Imperial cards).
FIEFS are regional, planetary jurisdictions granted by the Landsraad to its member Houses. They provide a consistent source of revenue for their governors.
HOME WORLDS (found on the deck box) are fiefs shared by lesser Houses. They are not considered unique. Home worlds and Dune are immune to capture and discard effects.
CHARTERS represent economic assets, including such diverse arrangements as partnerships, directorships, contracts and investments. Because charters pertain to the industries and organizations of the Imperium, they often bear allegiance.
A SIRIDAR FIEF includes both territorial and economic rights. Thus, a Siridar fief is both a fief and a charter. Dune is the only Siridar fief in the game.
3.1.2 Personas
Personas are yellow-faced cards. They are the central characters in the game and are divided into two subtypes: Allies (Imperial cards) and Aides (House cards). All personas are either allies or aides. If a persona gains one of these subtypes by virtue of another game card, they lose their previous subtype. In other words, a persona cannot be both an ally and an aide.
ALLIES are prominent individuals who serve an Imperial Power. Allies normally bear allegiance, and are unique determined by the card name, not by the card's subtitle. All allies are sub-typed as nobles or vassals. If an ally gains one of these subtypes, they lose their previous subtype. In other words, an ally cannot be both a noble and a vassal.
Nobles are hereditary members of the Imperial aristocracy. They possess titles such as Baron, Duke or Count, or sometimes lesser titles such as Lord or Lady.
Vassals are commoners who have distinguished themselves by their service. Vassals practice a variety of occupations including Mentat, Sword-master, Physician, et cetera.
AIDES represent House retainers who strive to distinguish themselves through excellent service. Unlike allies, aides are not considered unique. Aides may become nobles or vassals as a result of a card or game effect, but they remain aides unless the effect also specifically grants them the ally subtype. If an aide gains the ally subtype, it ceases to be an aide, but it does not become unique.
3.1.3 Resources
Resources are green-faced cards. They are the tools a House has available. Resources must be assigned to personas or holdings when deployed, and come in four subtypes: Personnel, Equipment, Enhancements (House cards), and Decrees (Imperial cards).
PERSONNEL represent groups who perform specific functions. Troops, corps and unions are a few of the personnel subtypes available.
EQUIPMENT represents the machinery and hardware used in the Imperium. Equipment subtypes include weapons, devices and transports.
ENHANCEMENTS represent improvements or augmentations. Enhancements include skills and titles for personas, bastions for cities, and so forth.
DECREES are enhancements granted by a Great House. Because they are granted by Great Houses, they are Imperial cards and often bear an allegiance.
3.1.4 Plans
Plans are gray-faced cards. They are deployed to generate effects during the game. Plans come in three types: Programs (Imperial cards), Ventures and Tactics (House cards).
PROGRAMS are Imperial plans that give rewards for meeting certain goals. They are kept separate from the decks; each is purchased at the start of the game and concealed face down under the home world until deployed. Like all Imperial cards, programs are unique.
VENTURES are special missions assigned to personas. They typically have talent requirements since they represent task-specific operations.
TACTICS alter or modify the initiation, procedure or outcome of operations. Unlike most other cards, tactics may also be deployed during a rivals' House Interval. All tactics belong to one of two subtypes - Declaration and Engagement - indicating when they are deployed. Most are further classified by the type of operation (Initiative, Petition, Rite, et cetera) they affect. All tactics are discarded once their effects have been resolved.
3.1.5 Events
EVENTS are blue-faced House cards. They depict sweeping changes within the Imperium or on the planet Dune. Though temporary in duration, events generate powerful effects that can significantly alter the game.
Events have two subtypes: IMPERIUM and DUNE. During a House Interval, several events may be placed facedown, but only one Imperium event and one Dune event may be deployed.
In addition, some Events have the NEXUS subtype. Nexus Events have effects that last more than one turn.
3.2 Card Elements
All cards share similar game elements. Each numbered paragraph below corresponds to the numbers shown in Figure 1 Card Diagram.
[1] DEPLOYMENT COST: This cost indicates the number of solaris that must be paid to bring the card into play. An "X" value means that the cost varies according to the text on the card. Some cards use special deployment rules; these are discussed in the appropriate sections.
[2] CARD NAME: This identifies the character, place, ability, action, et cetera, represented by the card.
[3] DEPLOYMENT RESTRICTION: There are two types of deployment restrictions: one is a card's allegiance, indicated by the symbol of one of the Imperial Powers; the other is a talent requirement, indicated by a talent icon and a number in a small black circle.
Cards with an Allegiance icon are affiliated with an Imperial Power, and have certain restrictions and penalties on their deployment. Personas, home worlds, charters, and personnel often have an allegiance.
A talent requirement indicates that the card must be assigned to or used with a card with a talent rank at least equal to the requirement indicated. For example, a card with a talent requirement of Intrigue 3 may only be used by cards with Intrigue talent at a rank of 3 or more.
[4] CARD TYPE: All cards belong to one of five main types. The type is represented by the general card design, particularly the color of the card face. Most cards are further classified by subtype.
[5] TALENTS: These represent the basic abilities available in DUNE. If a card possesses one or more talents, it will contain the corresponding talent icons. The accompanying numbers are called talent ranks, indicating increasing degrees of expertise in the designated talent.
[6] OPERATION: This explains how to use the card during play. It often describes common actions, but some introduce new abilities or effects. Operations can also impose restrictions concerning the deployment or use of a card. If a card's text contradicts a game rule, follow the instructions on the card.
[7] COMMAND: This is the leadership and authority of holdings and personas, indicating the total number of deployed personnel cards that may be assigned to them. Only currently deployed cards count towards this limit, subdued cards are ignored. A card may not be deployed if it would violate its host card's command limit. If a card loses command, excess deployed personnel must be discarded unless their governor can transfer them to another eligible target within that House's Domain.
[8] RESISTANCE: This represents the inherent toughness, durability, or health of the card. During conflicts, resistance serves as the primary defensive value. Cards with no listed Resistance are considered to have a Resistance of 1.
[9] ARTIST: This is the illustrator who provided the card's image.
3.3 Talents
Talents are expert abilities used to initiate Rites or use special cards. There are six talents: Dueling, Battle, Arbitration, Intrigue, Weirding and Prescience. If a card has a talent, the talent icon appears on the left side of the card.
The number next to the icon is the talent rank and shows how skilled the card is in the talent. Talent rank 0 indicates a basic familiarity with the skill. Cards without a talent icon do not have a rank of 0 in that talent.
Cards that give a bonus to a talent also bestow talent rank 0 if the associated card lacks that skill. For instance, the card Arms Training gives a persona +1 dueling rank. If it is assigned to a persona without dueling talent, the card actually bestows rank 0 and then a +1 bonus, for a total of Dueling 1. In comparison, a card that stated, "Target gains Dueling talent" would bestow Dueling 0 on that persona.
DUELING is martial training, particularly in the use of blades. High dueling ranks allow the use of advanced weapons and melee tactics. Personas use this talent to initiate Dueling Rites.
BATTLE is training in strategy and mass combat. High battle ranks denote the ability to use advanced weaponry and complex Battle tactics. Personas use this talent to initiate Battle Rites.
INTRIGUE is the mental acumen required for planning covert operations like sabotage and assassinations. High intrigue ranks often indicate the ability to employ Mentat reasoning. Personas use this talent to initiate Intrigue Rites.
ARBITRATION is expertise in diplomacy and statesmanship. High arbitration ranks connote the ability to incorporate personal authority during negotiations and use advanced Arbitration tactics. Personas use this talent to initiate Arbitration Rites.
WEIRDING is the esoteric training in the witching ways of the Bene Gesserit combined with rigorous Prana-Bindu nerve-muscle conditioning and an intense self-awareness. Adepts generate game effects unique to those who possess the "Weirding Way."
PRESCIENCE represents the powers of prediction and prophecy. This ability allows practitioners to sense greater movements within the universe, interpret dreams, detect truth or falsehood, and predict future events. High prescience ranks signify intensified sensitivity and awareness, permitting the use of powerful predictive tactics and enhancements.
3.4 Talent Requirements
Certain cards have a talent requirement: this is the talent and rank required to assign that card. For example, a House Battalion has a talent requirement of Battle 0. It may only be assigned to cards that have the Battle talent icon. Ventures often have talents listed in their card subtype. This refers to the talent required to execute the card, or utilized by the card in its resolution. Tactics often have talents listed in their card subtype. This indicates the Rite during which it may only be deployed.
4 Preparing for Play
Before beginning the game, collect the following items in addition to the DUNE decks:
- Distinct tokens to represent solaris and deferment tokens, spice, and miscellaneous effects. Use whatever tokens work best so long as you can tell the difference between the types.
- A set of dice, or paper and pencil to record each House's Imperial favor.
- A six-sided die to represent the CHOAM Rate of Exchange (CROE). As the CROE increases or decreases in value, turn the die so that the current value appears on top.
4.1 Creating a House Profile
The House Profile is the official document within the Imperial archive known as the Landsraad Registry. This document should contain the following information:
HOUSE NAME: Invent a name for the House.
SPONSOR: The Imperial Power patron for the deck.
HOME WORLD: List the sponsor's home world.
STARTING POINT: Each house has 5 bonus solaris at the start of the game. These may be kept or spent to buy programs, and produce extra starting favor or spice (these spice tokens do not come from the Guild Hoard). Favor costs 2 solaris per point, and spice costs the game's starting CROE+1 solaris each. Programs cost one solari each and are placed face down beneath the home world. These programs are not considered subdued, nor are they a part of the Imperial deck in any way. As Imperial cards, programs are unique; only one given program card may be purchased. No more than five solaris may be spent before the start of the game.
4.2 Building the Decks
The Imperial and House decks must comply with several restrictions. The Imperial Deck should be built first.
IMPERIAL DECK: The Imperial Deck must contain 10 cards or more (not including Dune). Cards with adversarial allegiance may not be included. If cards are included with allegiance to another non-adversarial Imperial power, no cards with allegiance to that power's adversaries may be included either (See 2.4.1 Adversaries). Since Imperial cards are unique, there can be no duplicates.
HOUSE DECK: The House deck must contain 30 cards or more. Cards bearing no allegiance or cards sharing allegiance with any card included in the Imperial deck may be included. A house card with an allegiance can only be included in the House Deck if an Imperial Card of the same allegiance exists in the Imperial Deck. No more than four of any one card (by card name) may be duplicated in the House deck.
5 Setting Up
DUNE uses two primary areas of play - the CHOAM Exchange, shared by everyone; and the House Territories governed by each player.
5.1 CHOAM Exchange
This includes the Imperial Treasury and the Guild Hoard, represented by two piles of tokens (solari and spice, respectively). A six-sided die marks the current value of the CHOAM Rate of Exchange (CROE). The CROE fluctuates depending on the amount of spice in the Guild Hoard. Set up the Exchange as follows:
IMPERIAL TREASURY: Place at least 20 solari tokens into the Imperial Treasury. If the Imperial Treasury ever runs out of solaris, simply add more solaris to it and resume play.
GUILD HOARD: Place 4 spice tokens in Guild Hoard. Then add 2 more spice tokens per player, for a total of 8 spice for 2 player games, 10 spice for 3 player games and so on.
The starting CROE depends on the number of spice tokens in the Guild Hoard. Set the CROE so the appropriate number shows on top of the CROE die.
| Spice in Guild Hoard | Exchange Rate (Solaris) |
|---|---|
| 13+ | 1 |
| 10-12 | 2 |
| 7-9 | 3 |
| 4-6 | 4 |
| 1-3 | 5 |
| 0 | 6 |
Table 2 CHOAM Rate Of Exchange
5.2 House Territory
House Territories define where each player keeps the cards they govern. It consists of three locations: the Forum, the Domain, and the Reserves.
Before setting up a House Territory, remove the cards from the deck box setting the Dune Siridar fief card aside. Sort the remaining cards into piles, one containing Imperial cards and one containing House cards.
5.2.1 House Forum
The forum holds the House Profile, Imperial Deck, Assembly, and Imperial Discard. This forum is the leftmost area of each House territory.
HOUSE PROFILE: Place the House profile to the far left.
IMPERIAL DECK: Shuffle the Imperial cards and place them face down in a pile to form the Imperial deck.
ASSEMBLY: Draw three cards from the Imperial deck and lay them face down to form the Assembly. Unless altered by card effects, the Assembly is limited to three cards. These cards may be viewed by their governor at any time. Assembly cards are not considered subdued and do not gain deferment tokens.
IMPERIAL DISCARD: When discarding Imperial cards, place them face up in a pile next to the Imperial deck.
5.2.2 House Domain
The House domain represents a House's jurisdiction and contains all of the personas, holdings and resources used during the game. The domain is the middle of the House territory. Since a home world is the initial location of the House domain, deploy the home world (located on the back of the deck box) to the upper left corner of the territory. Subdue the Dune Siridar fief to the immediate right of it.
5.2.3 House Reserves
The reserves are to the right of the House territory and maintains the following items:
HOUSE DECK: Shuffle the House cards and place them face down to form the House deck. Draw 7 cards to make a playing hand.
HOUSE DISCARD: When discarding House cards, place them face up in a pile next to the House deck. Discarding from the House Domain is the same as transferring to the discard pile (See 5.4 Discard and Transfer).
HOUSE TREASURY: Place 20 starting solaris in the treasury plus any designated by the House Profile.
HOUSE HOARD: Place starting spice tokens designated by the House Profile in the hoard.
IMPERIAL FAVOR: Indicate via dice total or recorded on paper an Imperial Favor of 10 plus any designated by the House Profile.
As solaris and spice accrue during the game, place them in appropriate pile (treasury or hoard).
5.3 Dune
All Houses begin the game with Dune subdued in their House Domain. A House may deploy Dune like any other subdued card. Dune is, of course, unique.
If a House comes to govern Dune, immediately subdue its home world. Dune becomes their home world (but unlike other home worlds, it remains unique) and gains allegiance to their House sponsor, losing all other allegiances. The original home world may not be engaged to request admission as long as Dune is governed. The old home world may only be re-deployed if Dune becomes subdued.
When Dune becomes the new home world, transfer all cards assigned directly or indirectly to the old home world to Dune, providing Dune can legally attach these cards. Also transfer all concealed programs. Transferred cards retain their current status (engaged, subdued, et cetera); cards that may not be transferred remain assigned to the old home world.
If the original home world is re-deployed, transfer all cards assigned to Dune back to the original home world, assuming it is a legal target.
5.4 Definitions, Terms, And Usage
DEPLOYMENT is putting a card into play. When deploying a card, pay its deployment cost and either place it in the House territory or assign it to another deployed card. Assigned cards are linked to their target.
DISCARD is the elimination of cards, tokens, or favor. When the target of a discard is a card, place it into the appropriate discard pile (Imperial or House) belonging to its owner. All ventures, programs, personnel and equipment cards assigned to that card must be reassigned to legal targets in the original Domain. Any instruction to "discard" a target card, token, or amount of favor means that the target of the discard is removed from play.
ENGAGEMENT/DISENGAGEMENT: The engaging of cards initiates most actions and effects in the game. To engage a card, rotate it 90 degrees. The card is now engaged and generates its desired action or effect. During the Opening Interval of the next turn, disengage any engaged cards so they can be used again. To disengage a card, simply return it to its upright position.
GOVERNANCE is the control a House has over its forces. A House governs all deployed cards and tokens in its territory, no matter who owns them. The word "governor," "govern" or "governing" are used to refer not only to specific cards or tokens, but also to the player who controls the territory in which they are located.
OWNER refers to a player's physical property, regardless of governorship. When a card or a rule refers to a card's owner, it always means the physical property of the player, regardless of where in the game the card has been deployed.
PAYING COSTS of some kind is made to initiate an effect. This payment usually involves transferring solaris from the House treasury to either the Imperial treasury or a rival's treasury. It can also require cards or tokens to be engaged, subdued, or discarded, or it might require the discard of some amount of Imperial favor.
PRODUCTION brings particular kinds of tokens into play. When producing tokens, place or assign them according to the operation description.
SUBDUAL is the act of turning a card face down on the table. A subdued card has been depleted, hidden, injured, or otherwise removed from action for a while. All subdued cards accrue one deferment token each Opening Interval.
When a card becomes subdued, cards assigned to it remain deployed and continue to produce effects. They can be transferred off their subdued parent card as usual. Programs are an exception; they are subdued whenever their parent card becomes subdued.
Subdued cards may not normally be the target of rites or game effects, unless a card operation specifically targets a subdued card. Subdued cards can neither be engaged nor assigned additional cards, until they have been deployed and are not considered to be governed by anyone. A House may, at any time, examine any subdued cards in their domain.
Subdued deserts maintain their assigned spice tokens. The spice has no effect unless a card specifically targets spice on subdued deserts. If its governor re-deploys the desert, such spice tokens are in play again. When deployed by a rival, the new governor of the fief must discover new spice.
TRANSFER is the reassigning of a card or token from its current location to a new location. Unless a card states otherwise, transferred cards retain their current status (engaged, subdued, et cetera) when moved to the new location. When a card is transferred from a House Domain, all ventures, programs, personnel and equipment cards assigned to that card must be reassigned to legal targets in the original Domain. If they cannot be reassigned, they are discarded instead. Programs are not discarded; they are removed from the game entirely. Cards transferred into the Assembly discard all cards and tokens assigned.
If there is no legal target for a transferred or captured card, it is discarded. (exempli gratia, if you capture a Spice Harvester, but have no deserts, you must discard the Spice Harvester).
6 Turn Sequence
Opening Interval (all Houses, in order)
- Disengage Phase
- Deferment Phase
- Initiative Phase
House Interval (each House by Initiative)
- General Operations (any number, any order)
- Petition an Assembly Card
- Deploy a House Card
- Place a Subdued Event
- Deploy a Subdued Card (except events)
- Deploy a Program
- Engage a Card
- Request Admission to High Council
- Restricted Operations (limited number, any order)
- Deploy a Subdued Event
- Purchase Favor
- CHOAM Exchange (either): Buy Spice, Sell Spice
- Initiate a Rite
Closing Interval (all Houses, in order)
- Assembly Administration Phase: Imperial Discard, Imperial Draw
- Hand Administration Phase: House Discard, House Draw
Table 3 Turn Sequence
6.1 Opening Interval
During the Opening Interval, Houses ready their cards for the coming turn, and determine the order of play for the rest of the turn. All Houses do the following, in order:
6.1.1 Disengage Phase
Each House may disengage their engaged cards. If a card is prevented from being disengaged due to some game effect, do not change its status.
6.1.2 Deferment Phase
Each House assigns one Deferment token to each subdued card. Facedown Assembly cards are not subdued, and do not get deferment tokens.
6.1.3 Initiative Phase
Initiative rank determines the order that Houses perform their turns (id est, the House Intervals). This phase has two sections, declaration and assignment.
DECLARATION: Each House declares its current favor. Beginning with the House that was assigned the last initiative rank in the previous round, and proceeding clockwise, each House may deploy an initiative tactic, or pass. (In the case of the first turn, determine randomly between the Houses with the lowest favor). Initiative tactics with Duration Effects are resolved just before Initiative ranks are assigned. When every House passes in succession, no more initiative tactics can be deployed.
Declared favor is current favor as modified by tactics and other effects. Cards that affect declared favor do not change the actual current favor. Declared favor is used solely for determining initiative.
ASSIGNMENT: After all tactics and effects are resolved, assign initiative ranks. Proceeding from highest declared favor to lowest, each House is assigned an initiative rank. The House with the highest favor earns initiative rank 1, the second highest favor gains rank 2 and so on.
If two or more Houses tie for declared favor, all deadlocked Houses discard the top card of their House deck. The House that discarded the card with the highest deployment cost wins the ranking, with subsequent ranks assigned from highest to lowest deployment cost. If the cards drawn are also tied, those still tied draw again until the tie is broken. If the deployment cost of a card is 'X', count it as a 10. Cards drawn in this way cost nothing and generate no effects.
6.2 House Intervals
Beginning with Initiative rank 1, each House completes its House Interval in turn. No House may begin its Interval until their predecessor has finished. Houses may deploy tactics during a rival's turn. If Houses want to deploy tactics simultaneously, deploy them in Initiative order.
The activities allowed in a House Interval are broadly grouped into General Operations and Restricted Operations. These may be performed in any order; they are not different segments of your House Interval. One could, for instance, perform a general operation; two restricted ones, and another general one during a House Interval.
General Operations [G]
The following operations may be initiated in any order, and may be repeated several times.
6.2.1 Petitioning [G]
The Order of Petitioning is a diplomatic affair regulated by the Great Convention. During a petition, the acting House sends representatives to lobby for aid in the form of Imperial allies, holdings, and decrees. The Imperial deck represents the assistance a House can acquire. The assembly represents the resources available during the current session of the Imperial Assembly. The Order of Petitioning creates a bidding contest in which Houses dispute the deployment of a target ally, holding, or decree. Rival Houses may contest this by tendering solaris to increase the deployment cost of the card.
BEGINNING A PETITION: A petitioning sequence begins when an eligible card is turned face up in the assembly. This card may not have a deployment cost greater than the solaris in the petitioner's House treasury. Moreover, because Imperial cards are unique, this card may not be already deployed by a rival. Additionally, a Dune fief must be governed before petitioning a card with the Native subtype.
A starting bid at least equal to the deployment cost of the card must be entered. The bid may be higher, but is limited to the number of solaris currently in the petitioner's House treasury. This bid is termed the standing deployment cost.
THE PETITIONING SEQUENCE: Petitioning continues as a sequence of rounds in which the Option is given to each House in turn, beginning with the petitioner and proceeding clockwise around the table. Each House exercises its Option by declaring whether they will increase the bid or pass.
To increase the bid, a House must declare a number of solaris greater than the standing deployment cost. This becomes the new standing deployment cost. No House may declare more solaris than exists in its House treasury. Increasing the bid keeps that House active in the Petitioning sequence allowing them to increase or pass when the Option once again returns.
To pass, simply declare the intention. A House must pass if it does not have enough solaris in its treasury to increase the standing deployment cost. Once a House has passed, it is removed from the petition entirely and gains no further petition Options.
DEPLOYING TACTICS: A House may deploy one petition tactic during each of its Options before declaring any intentions. This is the only time petition tactics can be deployed. Petition tactics are usually resolved immediately. If a tactic describes a Duration Effect, it is left face-up on the table and may be targeted by tactics deployed during subsequent Options.
PETITION RESOLUTION: The petition ends once all Houses pass in succession. The last House to increase the standing bid (the petitioner if no one increased) is the victor. If any petition tactics remain deployed, resolve them immediately upon determining the victor.
If the victor is the petitioner, the final deployment cost equals the full standing deployment cost. The petitioner pays the Imperial Treasury and deploys the card, placing it in their House domain in the engaged position. If the card has the same allegiance as the petitioner's sponsor, the petitioner may opt to lose any amount of favor to reduce the card's final deployment cost by an equal amount. If the card bears allegiance to a non-adversarial Imperial Power to the House's sponsor, the petitioner must also discard one favor.
If the victor is a House other than the petitioner, the final deployment cost equals the standing deployment cost minus the deployment cost listed on the card. Once the victor pays the Imperial Treasury, the petitioner must immediately turn the target card face down in the position it previously held in the petitioner's Assembly. Moreover, the petitioner may not initiate another Petition for the remainder of its House Interval.
If for any reason the final deployment cost cannot be fully paid (id est, insufficient funds in the treasury), the victor must also reduce its favor by the number of unpaid solaris. The card is still deployed if the petitioner was the victor.
Effects that return a card to the Assembly with no victor are considered to cancel that petition. Since the petition was not lost, another card in the Assembly may be petitioned, subject to the effect on the card that caused the petition to be canceled.
6.2.2 Deploy a House Card [G]
Pay the deployment cost in solaris and deploy a card from one's hand into the House Domain in the disengaged (ready) position. Discard one favor if the card bears allegiance to a non-adversarial Imperial Power. A card with the unique trait may not be deployed while any House has the same card currently deployed.
AIDES are not assigned to other cards, but may have cards assigned to them. A Dune fief must be governed before deploying an Aide with the Native subtype.
RESOURCES include Personnel, Equipment, and Enhancements. All are assigned to certain target cards (as stated on the card itself). Personnel are assigned to personas or holdings where the number of deployed Personnel cards assigned is not greater than the command rating of the target card. Enhancements and Equipment are assigned to a variety of card types; the legal targets are stated on the card. A resource may not be assigned to a subdued card. If a resource card has an allegiance, it may only be assigned to a card with the same allegiance or no allegiance.
Some resources have limits restricting the number of duplicates that may be assigned to a single target. Such limits are noted in the operation as "Limit [number]." Thus if a resource says "Limit 1," only one of that resource may be attached to an individual target card.
Once assigned, resources cannot be moved from one card to another without a card effect (except when deploying Dune).
VENTURES are missions that personas perform. They are deployed on a governed persona that meets the talent requirement and other conditions as described in the card text. Any number of ventures can be assigned to a given persona.
Assigning the venture does nothing until the intent to engage its target persona to produce its effects is declared. This can be done immediately after deploying the venture, later that turn, or on a subsequent House interval.
If a persona with a venture is captured or discarded, the House losing governance of the persona can transfer the venture to another eligible target. If there is no such eligible persona, discard the venture.
TACTICS alter or modify the initiation, procedure or outcome of operations. All tactics are deployed in reaction to something any House does. If two Houses wish to deploy tactics at the same time, they do so in the order of Initiative.
A tactic must satisfy its requirements before it can be deployed. Tactics with terms in its card subtype (such as Dueling) can only be deployed by the Houses involved in that type of operation. Engagement Tactics are deployed in response to any House engaging a card for any reason. Declaration Tactics are deployed in response to any House declaring their intent to perform an operation (including rites, petitions, CHOAM Exchanges, ventures, et cetera). Declaration Tactics with no subtype may only be deployed during the House Interval; they may not be deployed during the Opening or Closing Intervals.
The target of a tactic need not be the persona enacting the operation nor does it need to affect the House performing the operation (Exempli gratia, House Steiner can deploy Security Sweep on House Radagast's home world in response to House Malfoy's declaration of the intent to start a Dueling Rite against House Mishima).
With the exception of Duration Effect tactics, all tactics are resolved instantly. Another tactic may not be deployed in response to the deployment of a tactic. In the case of Duration Effect tactics, it is deployed and remains in play, producing its effect, until the operation it affects has been resolved, after which it is discarded. Such tactics can be the target of other cards that discard tactics.
6.2.3 Place a Subdued Event [G]
Before an Event card can be deployed, it must first be placed subdued in the governor's House domain. Placement is free of cost. Events accrue deferment tokens normally.
6.2.4 Deploy a Subdued Card [G]
If a subdued non-event card has been assigned at least one deferment token, it may be deployed. However, a subdued card cannot be deployed while assigned to another subdued card.
Pay the difference between its deployment cost and the number of deferment tokens assigned, and deploy it in the disengaged (ready) position. The card is now "in play" and may be engaged to generate effects or be targeted by other effects.
Once a subdued card has been assigned deferment tokens equal to its deployment cost, it must be deployed unless prohibited as above or by some card effect (exception: Events).
Subdued Imperial cards in the House Domain do not need to be re-petitioned; they are deployed as above.
6.2.5 Deploy a Program [G]
Programs remain concealed beneath the home world until deployed. To deploy a Program, engage the home world and assign it to a governed persona. This persona must have either no allegiance, or the same allegiance as the Program assigned.
If a deployed Program finds that its assigned persona gains an incompatible allegiance, nothing occurs. However, if the program is later subdued, it cannot be redeployed whilst the allegiance incompatibility exists.
Programs bear an X deployment cost where X equals the number of program tokens assigned. Even if no program tokens are assigned, subdued programs must be assigned at least one deferment token in order to be deployed.
6.2.6 Engage a Card [G]
Most cards have operations described on them. Engage a target card to execute the operation listed in its operation description. If the operation describes a tactic, it may only be engaged during the appropriate Interval, Phase, or Rite.
Some cards must be engaged to produce its effect, while others do not. Cards that produce effects without engaging do so even if they are engaged.
USING HOLDINGS: Many holdings produce spice or solaris. When engaging to produce spice, create new spice tokens. Do not take the spice tokens from the Guild Hoard or anywhere else in the game. When producing solaris, just take them from the Imperial Treasury.
USING VENTURES: Ventures deployed on an eligible target do nothing when they are first deployed. To use a venture assigned to a persona, declare the intent to engage its persona to activate the venture. If there are several ventures on a persona, pick one (and only one) when making the declaration. The other assigned ventures are not affected. Once other Houses have deployed any declaration tactics, engage the target to generate the effects described by the operation of the venture. If the persona engages for any other reason than to activate a given venture, that venture is not activated. It continues to be assigned to the persona, and can be activated later in the game.
Upon engaging the target persona, the venture generates its effect immediately. Operations initiating Rites immediately invoke that Rite with the venture's assigned persona as leader. Operations with Duration Effects last for the rest of that House Interval, and are resolved once the Interval has ended. All ventures are discarded once their effects have been resolved.
USING PROGRAMS: Programs gain tokens each time the condition described in its operations text is fulfilled. As the number of assigned tokens increase, so do the rewards generated upon their initiation and resolution. While subdued, programs cease to operate and cannot gain additional tokens.
While a program is deployed and has at least one program token assigned, its assigned persona may be engaged to active the program just like a venture. Resolve the effects in the "venture" portion of its operation. Upon resolution, discard all assigned tokens and remove it from play; do not place the program into the Imperial discard.
6.2.7 Request Admission to High Council [G]
A request for Admission to the Landsraad High Council may only be made by a House currently possessing at least 10 spice tokens in their hoard and at least 10 Imperial favor. Declare the intent to either engage a governed ally having the House's sponsor's allegiance or the House's current home world. If the ally or home world engages for any other reason, that request is aborted. Otherwise, the declared target is engaged and the House's request is accepted winning the game.
While Dune is governed, Dune becomes the House's home world. Therefore, the original home world cannot be engaged to Request Admission.
Restricted Operations [R]
The following activities may be performed in any order, but only a limited number of times.
6.2.8 Deploy a Subdued Event [R]
There are two types of events: IMPERIUM and DUNE. A House must govern a home world to deploy an Imperium event. Likewise, a House must govern a Dune fief to deploy a Dune event. Governing Dune fulfills the requirements for deploying both Imperium and Dune events. Only one Imperium event and one Dune event may be deployed per House Interval. Events deployed outside of the House Interval do not count towards this limit.
When an eligible event has accrued deferment tokens equal to or greater than its deployment cost (but at least one token), it may be deployed during the House Interval by discarding the accrued tokens and turning it face up in its current location. Unlike other subdued cards, solaris cannot be paid to deploy an event with insufficient deferment tokens.
Once deployed, the event generates its described effect immediately and must be discarded once its effect is resolved. Events with Duration Effects last through the remaining House intervals, and are discarded during the House Discard phase (exception: Nexus Events).
Nexus events are different. Their effects begin when deployed, but resolve on a later turn. Do not remove deferment tokens from Nexus events when deployed. Instead, remove one token during the House Discard Phase. Discard a Nexus event when the last token is removed.
6.2.9 Purchase Favor [R]
A House may increase its favor by as much as five points by paying two solaris to the Imperial Treasury per point of favor increased. Regardless of the number of favor bought, only one Buy Favor operation may be conducted during the House Interval.
6.2.10 CHOAM Exchange [R]
A House may either buy or sell up to three spice tokens in its House Interval, but not both. A CHOAM Exchange is done in one block. A House may not buy (sell) one spice token, perform some other operation, and then buy (sell) another spice token. Regardless of the number of spice tokens actually transferred, only one CHOAM Exchange may be conducted during the House Interval. Cards that give an additional CHOAM Exchange grant another complete transaction, separate and independent from the first.
| Spice in Guild Hoard | Exchange Rate (Solaris) |
|---|---|
| 13+ | 1 |
| 10-12 | 2 |
| 7-9 | 3 |
| 4-6 | 4 |
| 1-3 | 5 |
| 0 | 6 |
Table 4 Rate Of Exchange
BUYING SPICE: Declare the total number of spice tokens to be bought (maximum of three). Pay to the Imperial Treasury solaris equal to the CROE, and transfer 1 spice token from the Guild Hoard to the House Hoard. Adjust the CROE after each individual spice token is bought. Consult the CROE Table 4. If the number of spice tokens in the Guild Hoard indicates a new CROE, adjust the die to reflect the new rate.
Spice tokens may not be purchased if the Guild Hoard is empty. A House is forced to buy the declared number of spice tokens as long as it can with its available funds.
SELLING SPICE: Declare the total number of spice tokens to be sold (maximum of three). Transfer the first spice token from the House Hoard to the Guild Hoard, and collect from the Imperial Treasury solaris equal to the CROE.
Adjust the CROE after each individual spice token is sold. If the number of spice tokens in the Guild Hoard indicates a new CROE, adjust the die to reflect the new rate. The CROE may not be reduced below 1 by any means.
6.2.11 Initiate a Rite [R]
Conflict lies at the heart of the Imperium. The Great Convention provides formal rules for resolving House conflicts without harming innocents. These rules - the Forms of Kanly - dictate the types of aggression permitted and the processes involved. The Forms of Kanly sanction four methods for settling disputes among the Houses. These ritual forms are called Rites, and each has its own flavor and purpose.
DUELING: Two personas engage in personal combat to settle issues of House honor.
BATTLE: Rival Houses use troops to contest the governance of a territorial fief.
ARBITRATION: Rival House delegates refute the appointment of economic charters.
INTRIGUE: House operatives undermine or eliminate members of a rival house through assassination and deception.
These four rites are grouped into Landsraad rites and CHOAM rites. Dueling and Battle rites are Landsraad Rites, while Arbitration and Intrigue rites are CHOAM Rites. To avoid full-scale warfare, A House may only perform one Landsraad rite and one CHOAM rite against each rival during their House Interval. Rites initiated by ventures count against this House Limit unless the venture's operation states otherwise.
Rites can only target certain cards, as shown below.
| Rite | Target | Type | Talent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dueling | Persona | Landsraad | Dueling |
| Battle | Fief | Landsraad | Battle |
| Arbitration | Charter | CHOAM | Arbitration |
| Intrigue | Persona | CHOAM | Intrigue |
Table 5 Eligibility Chart
All Rites are resolved in three intervals, subdivided into segments. During a Rite, the initiating House is the Attacker and the rival House is the Defender. The Rite Sequence outlines the segments of all Rites (See Table 6 Rite Sequence).
| Interval | Segments |
|---|---|
| Initiation Interval | Attacker Declaration; Attacker Engagement; Defender Declaration; Defender Engagement |
| Assessment Interval | Force Calculation; Force Distribution |
| Resolution Interval | Resolution |
Table 6 Rite Sequence
Initiation Interval
All Rites are initiated by personas or card effects. Initiation consists of Declaration and Engagement, and proceeds in segments from the attacker to the defender.
ATTACKER DECLARATION: The acting House states a Rite to initiate and declares a disengaged persona they govern possessing the required Rite talent at rank 0 or better to be the attack leader. If the Rite is initiated by a card effect, the persona to be engaged to produce the card effect is the leader.
Name any assigned personnel to the attack leader as additional participants as desired. They must meet the same requirements as the leader. That is, they must be disengaged and possess the required talent of the Rite, or have some other card text that specifically allows them to participate.
DIRECT: A Rite leader with the ability to Direct allows additional personas to be declared participants of the Rite. These additional personas must have a total command rank less than that of the Directing persona. For instance; a directing leader with a Command Rank of 4 could bring three additional personas of rank 1, or two of ranks 2 and 1, or one of rank 3. All additional personas brought into the Rite by the directing leader must be disengaged, and must posses the same allegiance as the leader or no allegiance. Eligible personnel assigned to these additional personas may be included as participants.
Name a rival's card as the target of the rite. To be eligible, a target must be a valid target (See Table 5 Eligibility Chart) governed by another House. The target must not possess the same allegiance as the Rite leader. The target of the rite need not be disengaged, nor must it have the same talent; any persona can be the target of a Duel, no matter how bad they are with a sword.
Starting with the defender and proceeding clockwise, each House in turn may deploy a Declaration tactic. This process continues until no one wishes to deploy any further tactics.
The attacking and defending Houses may only deploy Declaration tactics specific to the Rite, id est, tactic cards that list Battle, Intrigue, Arbitration, or Dueling in their subtype. Other Houses may deploy non-specific declaration tactics during the Attacker Declaration segment. Once this segment has ended, only the attacking and defending Houses may deploy tactics later in the Rite.
Discard all tactics as they are resolved except Duration Effects. Duration Effect tactics remain assigned until the end of the Rite, and may be targeted by other tactics.
ATTACKER ENGAGEMENT: Engage all declared attack participants. If for any reason the leader cannot engage, abort the Rite. Aborted Rites do not count toward the number of rites that may be performed in the House Interval.
Starting with the defender, the two Houses involved alternate deploying engagement tactics. Discard all tactics as they are resolved except Duration Effects. Duration Effect tactics remain assigned until the end of the Rite, and may be targeted by other tactics.
DEFENDER DECLARATION: The defending House declares the target of the Rite as the defense leader. Thus, the leader may be a charter or fief.
COUNTER: Counter operations allow the defender to change the target of the Rite to the persona Countering. The countering persona becomes the defense leader, regardless of the eligibility to be the target for that Rite. A countering persona must be disengaged, and must have a different allegiance from the attack leader or no allegiance. A persona targeted by a rite cannot Counter.
Declare any personnel assigned to the defense leader as additional participants as desired. Such personnel must possess the talent appropriate to the Rite. Personnel that do not participate are not affected by the results of the Rite.
DIRECT: A defense leader with the ability to Direct allows additional personas to be declared as participants in the Rite (See Direct, above).
Starting with the attacker, the two Houses alternate deploying declaration tactics. Discard all tactics except Duration Effects, as they are resolved. Duration Effect tactics remain assigned until the end of the Rite, and may be targeted by other tactics.
DEFENDER ENGAGEMENT: The defending House may now engage the defense leader. If the leader is already engaged, the Rite proceeds normally.
If the defending House chooses not to engage the defense leader, the leader generates no force but still receives force as normal during resolution. If any additional participants were declared, they are no longer considered participants and cannot engage (even if otherwise eligible).
Starting with the attacker, the two Houses alternate deploying engagement tactics. Discard all tactics except Duration Effects, as they are resolved. Duration Effect tactics remain assigned until the end of the Rite, and may be targeted by other tactics.
Assessment Interval
Assessment begins after all participants and tactics have been engaged and deployed. No further tactics can be deployed until after the end of the rite.
FORCE CALCULATION: Both Houses declare their force total. Add together the required talent ranks of each participant to arrive at the force total. Include any modifiers generated by tactics or special operations. If a card ends up participating in a Rite for which it does not have the required talent, it applies no force to its opponent.
Personnel not engaged to participate in a Rite have no effect on the Rite and do not add any force whatsoever during Force Distribution.
FORCE DISTRIBUTION: Each House distributes their force total among participating targets in the opposing group. The Attacker distributes force first, followed by the Defender.
Force may not be distributed to cards with assigned participants unless those assigned participants receive sufficient force to vanquish them. Similarly, force may not be distributed to a directing leader unless all other participants in its group receive sufficient force to be vanquished.
Personnel cards that did not participate in a Rite have no effect on the Rite and do not need to be vanquished before the card they are assigned to can be vanquished.
If a card defends in a Rite for which it is not an eligible target, it still receives force normally and may be vanquished.
Resolution Interval
All participants resolve their applied force simultaneously (Exception: see Surprise, below). A card is vanquished if the force applied to it equals or exceeds its total Resistance. Vanquished cards are immediately subdued. Ignore any force applied to a participant that is less than its resistance.
SURPRISE: Any participant with Surprise can distribute and resolve its contributing force against opposing participants first. Participants vanquished by this force cannot add force to their group's force total. If both Houses use Surprise during a Rite, the House with the lowest initiative rank (highest declared favor) resolves its surprise force first.
CAPTURE: Capture allows a House to take control of a target participant, becoming its governor. Personas that can capture vanquished participants do so only if they are neither vanquished nor discarded during the rite, or if their capture ability is described as a tactic that takes effect before rite resolution.
To resolve a capture, transfer the target to the captor's House domain. If it is a resource, immediately subdue it and assign it to a persona or holding in the new House domain. If the target possesses adversarial allegiance, subdue it regardless. Otherwise, the target retains its current status. Capturing a persona allied to another Imperial Power has no impact on a House's adversaries.
If the target has any enhancements or tokens assigned, they remain assigned. Any spice and deferment tokens assigned to a captured subdued card also remain assigned. Personnel, Equipment and Program cards assigned to the target remain with their former governor, who must immediately transfer them to eligible targets. If no eligible target exists, discard them (programs are instead removed from play).
Many cards that allow Capture are Duration Effects, but this means that the card lingers before producing its effect. This is not a limit on the Capture, which is still permanent.
DISCARD: Discard operations cause a participant vanquished during a rite to be removed from play. Discard the target to the owner's appropriate discard pile. If the target had any assigned Enhancements or tokens, discard them as well. Personnel and Equipment must immediately be transferred to eligible targets. If no eligible targets remain, they must also be discarded.
CONSEQUENCES: The Great Convention rewards success in sanctioned rites. Only the attacking House gains this reward, and only if the original target was vanquished, regardless if the attack leader was also vanquished. If a countering target was subdued, no bonus is awarded.
- LANDSRAAD RITES: The attacking House may either increase its favor or decrease the defending House's favor by an amount equal to the total number of defense participants vanquished during the Rite.
- CHOAM RITES: The attacking House may either generate solaris in its treasury, or force the defending House to discard solaris from its treasury, equal to twice the total number of defense participants vanquished. The defender is not required to pay more solaris than exists in their treasury.
6.3 Closing Interval
The closing interval consists of two phases. Houses simultaneously perform these phases in the following order.
6.3.1 Assembly Administration Phase
IMPERIAL DISCARD: Each House discards any number of unwanted cards in its assembly. If the assembly contains more cards than the assembly limit, discard the excess. Unless altered by a card in play, a House's assembly limit is 3 cards.
All discards are placed face-up. Discard piles are not kept secret and may examined by other Houses at any time, maintaining the order of cards.
IMPERIAL DRAW: Each House draws cards from its Imperial deck and places them face down in its assembly. A House may only draw cards up to the assembly limit. Drawing cards is optional; if cards run out while drawing, there is no penalty.
6.3.2 Hand Administration Phase
HOUSE DISCARD: Each House may discard any number of cards from its hand. If a House holds more cards than its hand limit, discard down to the hand limit. Unless altered by a card in play, the hand limit is 7.
Discard one deferment token from Nexus events; discard events without tokens.
All discards are placed face-up. Discard piles are not kept secret and may examined by other Houses at any time, maintaining the order of cards.
HOUSE DRAW: Each House must draw cards from the House Deck up to its hand limit. A House with favor of 0 or less may not draw cards.
If a House cannot fill its hand to the hand limit, it is eliminated from the game. Remove all of its cards and tokens from play. If a rival governs cards owned by an eliminated House, discard them as during a Rite.
Thus, a House entering the Closing Interval with enough cards in its hand to satisfy the hand limit can continue playing normally, regardless of its disgraceful favor or lack of cards in its House Deck only if it chooses not to discard below the hand limit.
7 Allegiance Rules
- A card with allegiance to an Imperial Power can be assigned only to cards with the same allegiance, or no allegiance.
- Discard one favor whenever a card bearing allegiance to a non-adversarial Imperial Power other than the sponsoring Power is deployed. This includes deployment after petition, subdual, and from ones hand. Whenever a card bearing adversarial allegiance is deployed, discard favor equal to its printed deployment cost.
- A card, that changes allegiance depending on a certain condition (exempli gratia, Doctor Kynes) and that condition has already been met prior to deploying or Petitioning, is deployed as though it already had the new (or dual) allegiance.
- If a deployed card finds it is now assigned to a card with an incompatible allegiance, nothing occurs: it is not subdued or discarded. Allegiance restrictions are only checked during deployment. If it is subdued, it cannot be redeployed whilst the allegiance incompatibility exists.
- A persona that gains or adopts a new allegiance now has two allegiances; both allegiances are subject to all allegiance rules.
- A captured card allied to another Imperial Power does not change the adversaries of a House.
HOUSE ADVANTAGE: When deploying an Assembly card after a successful petition that bears allegiance to the House sponsor, the final deployment cost may be reduced by one solari for each favor discarded. This advantage does not affect bidding; No bid may exceed the solaris in the House treasury. Favor may not be used to reduce the cost of House cards deployed from ones hand.
8 Optional Rules
8.1 Additional Victory Condition
If a House possess at least 1 favor and governs Dune, Arrakeen, Carthag, the Imperial Basin, the Minor Erg and the Open Bled, it may force admission to the High Council by engaging each of the six fiefs demonstrating its overwhelming control of Arrakis. If any of these fiefs becomes engaged for any other reason, the attempt fails and play continues.
8.2 Favor-Related Rules
8.2.1 Surrender Initiative
During Initiative Declaration, a House with declared favor equal to a rival may voluntarily surrender initiative allowing the rival to win the tie. If accepted, neither House draws cards, while the House surrendering the initiative gains 1 favor after all rankings have been assigned.
8.2.2 CHOAM Obligation
Neglecting to promptly reset the CROE when instructed to do so incurs a loss of one favor. A House is considered negligent once it begins any action unrelated to the operation pertaining to the CROE.
8.3 House Operations
8.3.1 Event Deployment
Events with deferment tokens equal to their deployment cost must either be deployed or discarded during your House Interval. Events with an "X" deployment cost must be deployed once they have deferment tokens equal to their maximum deployment cost, if one is listed in their operation. Houses may not violate their Interval maximums to deploy such Events, but instead must choose which to deploy and then discard the remainder.
8.3.2 Deploying Tactics in Multi-Player Games
Any House may deploy tactics during a Rite, regardless of whether the House governs one or more participants in the Rite.
9 Dune Lexicon
- ADVERSARY: an Imperial Power who is your sponsor's enemy.
- ALLEGIANCE: the affiliation a card shares with an Imperial Power.
- ASSEMBLY: imperial cards available, face down in the House forum.
- ASSIGN: place a card or token on a card to modify its ability or effect.
- CHOAM EXCHANGE: the Imperial Treasury and the Guild Hoard.
- COMMAND: vested authority, expressed as a numerical rank.
- CROE: the trading value of spice based on the Guild Hoard's supply.
- DECLARATION: segment when the governor commits to a rite or action.
- DEFERMENT TOKENS: tokens on a subdued card to help it deploy.
- DEPLOYMENT: playing a card from your hand or turning a card face up.
- DEPLOYMENT COST: solaris to be must pay to bring a card into play.
- DISCARD: removing a card or token from play.
- DISENGAGEMENT: the act of maturing a card to its upright, disengaged position, indicating that the card is ready to perform an operation.
- DOMAIN, HOUSE: the area of the House Territory containing the home world and all of the personas, holdings, and events placed them.
- DURATION EFFECT: an effect generating a delayed or prolonged result.
- EFFECT: the result initiated by a card or game operation.
- ENGAGEMENT: rotating a card 90 degrees to indicate it has performed an operation. Also, the segment of a rite where cards are engaged.
- ENHANCEMENT: assigned cards that augment a target card.
- EQUIPMENT: a type of enhancement gained from material goods.
- FAVOR: the esteem held by a House. Landsraad reputation.
11 Card Clarifications
Arrakeen Richece
Arrakeen Richece must be a participant to gain any favor from them.
Assassin's Honor
Assassin's Honor may be assigned to an opponent's attack leader during an Intrigue Rite subduing both leaders.
Beyond the Faufreluches
One must first be at 0 favor or less before this card has any effect. If at 0 or less favor and are required to lose favor, then tokens assigned.
CHOAM Complot
CHOAM Complot prevents the use of tactic abilities of attacking personas.
Counter Conspiracy
Pay X and assign it tokens to mark how much was paid. When engaged, this card can be used against a target venture with a deployment cost less than or equal to the tokens assigned. When assigned to Gurney (TaT), set X to any value.
Desert Hawk and El-Sayal versus Windtrap
Desert Hawk and El-Sayal (Rain of Sand) may discard a Windtrap card assigned to the appropriate target.
Diplomatic Settlement
This card refers to the main defense participant when it states 'target'. It may be used by attacker or defender. It has no effect when the main defense participant is already engaged.
Duncan Idaho (TaT)
A Fabled Crysknife does count as a Crysknife for his ability.
Effect Of Enhancements On Subdued Personas
Cards that are assigned to a subdued target still have their printed effect, so long as that card effect does not require it to be engaged. Exempli gratis, Full Reverend Mother always gives the following effects to its assigned target: +1 Weirding Rank, +1 Resistance and Immunity to Poison Effects; Subterfuge always gives its assigned target +1 Intrigue Rank. A Carryall could not be used to transfer a Spice Harvester if the Spice Harvester or the desert it was assigned to is subdued nor could they be moved to a subdued desert.
Elacca Languor
The discard happens immediately.
Emperors Truthsayer
Emperor's Truthsayer may be used to change the target of a rite performed by either of Jamis or Kaldo Radij.
Gang Assailants (and its kind)
Use this card to group current, legal, already included rite participants into one massive force (and resistance) for the duration of the rite.
Governor of Arrakis
If anyone governs Dune, then discard Governor of Arrakis. Thus if someone already governs Dune, it would be immediately discarded when deployed.
Grant Furlough and Voice Command
Voice Command takes precedence; meaning that one may sell a persona with Grant Furlough but at the end of the turn when Voice Command is discarded, the persona is transferred back to the original owner.
Guild Bank Arbiter
Consider any card that is a "Charter" and a "Dune whatever" to be considered a target Dune charter for this card.
Harkonnen Sleeper
If a House attempts to use an ability like Gauvir's in an inappropriate situation (id est, trying to look at a non-event card) then the card is still engaged or used and one would simply state that it is not an event.
Hellhounds
If two Hellhounds were assigned to a persona, engage one and pay 2 solaris to give both Hellhounds surprise.
Home World, Dune Discard, Capture and Transfer
Home worlds and Dune may not be Transferred, Captured or Discarded. Usurp Holding no longer works to send Dune back to the Assembly.
Leader with a Decree
The leader must be disengaged to use the tactic on a decree unless the decree does not state "engage target".
Mahdi
Mahdi does allow its governor to engage any Fremen persona to counter, including a rival's.
Maneuver Pawn
The current House gains any secondary benefits from using this card, like capturing while using Piter. It can be used to attack the 'current' governor of the persona and thus may either cause them to pay the penalty or both Houses gain the reward (solaris or favor).
Master at Arms
Only the Master at Arms may use this ability.
Military Transport versus Smuggler Frigate
Using Smuggler Frigate negates any cost, even when doubled by Military Transport. Zero cost doubled is zero.
Palace Keep and Home worlds
Palace Keep works on all home worlds except Forbidden Zone.
Petitioning Tithe
Duration Effect: Assign to the petition target. The victor must pay X solaris of the final deployment cost to the card's governor instead of the Imperial treasury. X equals the final deployment cost minus the listed deployment cost. Once deployed, no other house may deploy Petitioning Tithe.
Piter (EotS), Margot, Liscia
The persona must survive the rite to employ the capture or discard effect.
Production Quota
Production Quota does not produce spice for the Guild Hoard from deserts that are already engaged.
Regent-Siridar
Regent-Siridar either increases a cards spice production or increases a cards solaris production. It does not allow a card to gain a new type of production.
Renegade Sister
This special ability may only be used on the governor's turn.
Shadow Partnership
A House may have deployed in their domain Shadow Partnership and a card that was used to create it originally. Exempli gratis, one may copy a rivals Suk School, subdue the rival's card and then deploy one's own.
Soo-Soo Nejhre
The 'Engagement Tactic' is not a duration effect. One may use it during an engagement phase and it would end at the end of the rite it was used in.
Spice Mining Inspection
The House must pay the full amount in spice. If they cannot, then they must pay favor equal to the CROE and no spice.
Umma
If the target event currently has deferment tokens equal to or greater than its deployment cost, it may be deployed using Umma, at a cost of zero. Umma must still be engaged.
Usurp Holding
Usurp Holding no longer works to send Dune back to the Assembly.
Voice Command
Any secondary effects from using a captured persona are the "current" governor's gifts. Exempli gratis, if Piter is Voice Commanded and then captures a persona, that persona is kept even when Piter returns to its governor.
Wake Shot
The key words here are "when engaging......to assign deferment tokens......" so it won't help Yueh or any other physician that isn't engaging to add tokens.